Spirits Who's who

Meet the Spirits of New Orleans

The Who’s Who

This is my Who’s Who from legends, lore and the world of New Orleans spirits ghosts.

The famous and the infamous rank in our “Who’s Who,” starting with our top seven New Orleans Ghosts. Some are more active ghosts than others, but all contribute to keeping New Orleans herself legendary. Of course, new legends are born and die everyday in New Orleans, so our Who’s Who will grow right alongside…

Take our tours or read Bloody Mary’s new book, Hauntings, Horrors and Dancing with the Dead for more in-depth, personal ghost stories and information and you must come see the new Haunted Museum opening in April.

Check my blog for inside info on their hauntings today, Check below on their gravestones for a little bit more of their history & dig deeper and read toggles +

Flip gravestones for quick facts, then scroll down for more…

Marie Laveau

1801-1881

The Voodoo Queen

Marie Laveau portrait by Charles Gandolfo hangs in The Voodoo Museum. She was born a free woman of color and grew to be the most sought after folk healer here. She rose to fame in the 1820’s and held reign until her death in 1881. The Queen still remains in charge: Marie Laveau’s tomb in St. Louis Cemetery #1 is a sacred site.

Madame Delphine Lalaurie

1789-1844

Most notoriously known ghost in the South!

Socialite, sadist, serial killer and cougar, Madame Lalaurie was a New Orleans native – a true Creole lady. Her parties were famous and the treatment of her slaves infamous. She ranks high in our list of Spirits “Whos who'” and is the most well known ghost in the South.

Julie, the Octroon Mistress

1800's - 1830's

Julie, the Naked Ghost; Seen most often on the roof

“A Night Alone,” portrait by Rodrigue Gallery located in Julie’s haunted home, 730 Royal St. Julie’s tale is one of romance and tragedy She was a beautiful Free Woman of Color whose lingering spirit is still very concerned with matters of Love. She ranks in the Top 3 New Orleans ghosts in our Spirits Who’s who Ghost legend list, and is a personal favorite o f mine

Josie Arlington

1854 - Feb 14th, 1914

Queen of the Red Light District, Famous Storyivlle Madame

Born Mary Deubler in NOLA of German Descent

Jean Lafitte

Roamed New Orleans to Barataria 1800-1815.

Patriot, Privateer, Smuggler

Jean Lafitte was an adventurer both in his life and afterlife.

General P. T. Beuregard

Native New Orleans 1818-1893

Confederate General, Local politician & Author

Maman You - The Spirit of the MIssissippi

Protector and Ancient Mysterie. Sometime she is depicted through a statue of the Virgin Mary, sometimes a woman with snake or mermaid lower extremities.

Sweetwaters Mermaid Spirit

Marie Laveau – A New Orleans Native born free woman of color who became famous around 1830 as recognized as New Orleans Voodoo Queen throughout the rest of her life till 1881 . This New Orleans Voodoo priestess was called upon for help in the flesh and still in spirit form is still the voodoo queen today. Her final resting place in St. Louis cemetery no. 1 is considered a shrine by many who appeal to her for intersession and as a folk saint for her renown psychic and physical healing abilities.

Through the years the persona of Marie has been subject to transformation and is constantly rewritten, loved and smitten and feared and revered. The most recent resurgence unfortunately was in the dark side of Voodoo and Marie Laveau revitalized through the SFX American Horror story season 3: Coven. Here Hollywood digs up an unfounded rumor of Marie as a baby killer, a Voodoo filled with evil spells only and the spirit of Papa Legba deflated as the Devil and a Baron Samedi combined who requires baby sacrifice plus other inflammatory ideals fabricated for entertainment.

The religion that New Orleans Voodoo Queen Marie Laveau taught and practiced in 19th century was a tribute to her ancestral lands of Africa, European and native American bloods

Mystically her spirit is very active in New Orleans where she has been seen and felt in deed and apparition, Her spiritual presences is acknowledged heavily to this day and she IS buried in St Louis Cemetery #1. Rumors say she had been moved but it is an unfounded rumor. It was a documented fact that she had requested specifically NOT to be moved from the Laveau/ Legendre tombs before her death and meets and greets from there today.

Madame Lalaurie was a native born upper class creole aristocrat who was known for her beauty, grace and wealth She threw lavish parties in the style of her first cousin

Micaela Almonester, Baroness de Pontalba, the richest woman in town. She was connected physically and politically to the upper class. Madame Lalaurie is acknowledged today as a serial killer a sadistic torturer but was above reproach in her lifetime till a fateful fire in April 10. 1934 exposed the atrocities of her tortures and she was run out of town, Never to step foot in the flesh in New Orleans again, Her remains were eventually returned and her spirit never left her native soil.

She haunts Her Royal street address and other areas as well. She is not alone on 1140 Royal street for the spirits of some of her slaves and latter tenants join in on the haunts, The Madame Lalaurie Story is the most infamous and debaucherous ghost story in the South . Many renditions of her tale have been whispered and written- in under inflated and overinflated slants since the before the final curtain call in 1834. Recently American Horror story resurrected her once again and revamped her tale. But. though pun intended, it was Bloody Mary all along who has taught of her as femme fatale incarnate de la NouvelleOrleans Madame Lalaurie may have been depicted as blood thirsty in AHS, but she is clearly portrayed as a Vampyra in Bloody Mary’s new release: Bloody Mary’s Guide to Hauntings, Horrors and Dancing with the Dead. Delphine Lalaurie is a world famous New Orleans ghost but Bloody Mary shows us more: “in the flesh and spirit, Delphine is the perfect Vampyra .”

Julie is one of the top 3 most famous ghosts in New Orleans. She is viewed mostly in December and sought after on the rooftops of the 700 block of Royal Street atop of the famous Blue Dog Gallery where she froze to death in the early half of the 19th century.

Some believe she walks the roof naked today , though when I have seen her and I and my tours have indeed seen her, she is usually dressed. Her spirit is strong and her story has been passed down orally and written about since the 1800’s.

The Queen of Storyville, New Orleans most famous Madame is still the talk of the town. America’s first red light district was in New Orleans and Josie is still the First Lady of that Tenderloin district. Storyville lived form 1898-1917 and Josie lives in legend to this day. She died in the flesh in 1914 but her spirit still makes headlines today. Her gorgeous red marble tomb in Metairie Cemetery has been rumored to be haunted since her death , and it is! Read more about her in my book #bloodymarysguide to Hauntings, Horrors and Dancing with the Dead and See her tomb in person on the Cities of the Dead tour and occasional moonlight graveyard twilight tours too. The bronze beauty statue at her tombs front door is said to walk evermore and the tomb itself used to glow a phantom red.

Jean is an incredibly active spirit who seems to still reach out the protect the downtrodden and help the common man.His spirit, sometimes alongside his brothers, have been seen from New Orleans to Galveston, even up to Missouri! He was an American patriot and war hero in the Battle of New Orleans , He was also a sort of Robin Hood to the people here in life, providing goods and services at a good price. He refused to be called a private and preferred the term privateer for he had letters of marque! He is a large part of my new book, Bloody Mary’s guide to Hauntings, horrors and Dancing with the Dead and do watch for an up coming log post , Jean Lafitte’s is course is a star presented on almost all of the different styles of Bloody Mary’s Tours which meet at Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop Bar 941 Bourbon Street, Bloody Mary’s tours and meeting place for fifteen years and the best haunted bar in the country!

Beauregard is said to haunt the Beauregard Keyes house in the French Quarter as well as his tomb in Metairie cemetery and possibly soon at the entrance to city park where the ghost of he and his equestrian statue may soon haunt if the recent decision to remove civil war statues takes effect.

Protector and Ancient Mysterie: Sometimes she is depicted through a statue of the Virgin Mary, sometimes a woman with snake or fish mermaidesque lower extremities. In New Orleans Voodoo and the Native American tribes that were the watchers of the land and spirit of place. We to salute and honor the Mother, the head of the river system, the Mississippi herself. Her caretakers throughout time feed, sing and dance to our spirit of the river in mermaid form and call upon her as Maman You. She is our Mami waters Of Gulf Coast and Louisiana swampland -the spirit of place. She Generally honored through a statue of the Virgin Mary at the pinnacle of the New Orleans Voodoo altars though she was also shown as a woman with the lower extremities of a snake or mermaid with a Sirene fish like tail .